I am enraged. A friend of my wife sent her 3 year old to a state-run daycare here in the suburbs. When she got the little girl home, her diaper was missing and her genitals appeared to be inflamed. ...

Additional DetailsTo all you people who think your smarter because your older and talk sh*$ "you should lose your license" and "did daddy buy your car so you could. . .&...

Alex J

Do I, by law, have to carry an ID on me.?

If i am just walking around or riding in a car that someone else is driving, but I do own a drivers licence on me, my only form of ID, am I required by law to carry it on me? I live in California. I would love a good source, so i can prove it to my wife. thanks everyone.

By law you have to carry a Valid ID on your person at all times. Even if you are just walking. This ID can help in an emergency situation and in others. A person who is stopped by the police and doesn't have an ID can be held in jail until there identity is proven. I've seen it happen.

It may not be illegal but having one makes everything easier for you such as buying tobbaco alcohol, lotto tickets or lighters... I am a convinience store clerk and I deny sales to lots of people that come without ID..

Plus if a deputy stops you and asks for ID, showing him one saves you a thousand questions about you, criminals are known not to carry ID's so as to avoid recognition by law enforcement officers... being without one raises a flag. In some countries it is a legal requirement to carry id if you are atleast 18 years old...

All of the previous answers are good. In addition, if you get arrested for anything you will be detained as a "John Doe" until you can properly ID yourself. That means no processing, no paper work, no bail. Plus, people from California always want to test things. Whats up with that?

I never have an ID card when I get pulled over, for some reason. Its been about 5 times in the last 15 years. I just tell them my name, and give them my DL#.
PS. I havent been ticketed since 91 either.

Absolutely not, There are no laws requiring citizens to carry ID, unless they are engaged in activities required special permits, like hunting or driving, in which case a license must be carried. Your obligation is to cooperate with authorities and tell them the truth, or nothing at all. If however, you do not carry a boni fide ID, then authorities can use common sense and reasonable means to determine if you are someone they are looking for .

If you're driving you're required to have a license with you. If you are detained or arrested by the police, you will probably not be released until your identity is established.

But the answer is no for the most part. Ask your wife if she knows of any law in California that requires a person to obtain ID at some age...she won't, and if there's no law that requires you to obtain it, then there's certainly no law that requires you to carry it.

There is no law which requires you to carry ID in California. Period. That is not to say you won't have to show ID for certain purposes, such as buying cigs or booze. Of course, you have to have a drivers license in your possession when driving. But just walking down the street, or riding in a car? Nope.

There is no law in California which makes it a crime, or basis for detention, to fail to show ID, even if demanded by a police officer. Although the US Supreme Court has recently held that a State can make it an offense to refuse to identify yourself to a police officer if demanded upon a lawful detention, California has no such law. (Even that Nevada law did not require a person to have ID, just to give his name.)

Of course, if a police officer has a legitimate reason to detain you, and you cannot identify yourself, that may cause him to think he should look for some OTHER valid reason to arrest you. But he cannot lawfully detain you longer, or arrest you, just because you don't have ID.

Unfortunately, it is very difficult to cite a source for a negative. For example, it is not required that you carry a rutabaga with you either, but I cannot cite to anything which says so.